Pair face homicide charges over crash which killed Oconto Falls man

OCONTO – The passenger of a pickup truck intentionally caused a fatal crash Tuesday when he grabbed the steering wheel and swerved it through the median into the wrong lanes of U.S. 41 in Oconto County, the driver told authorities after the accident.

The driver, Kelly N. Crispin, 26, said her passenger, Eric W. Soloman, 31, grabbed for the wheel after punching her in the head when she told him she didn’t want to date anymore, according to the criminal complaint.

Both were charged Friday with homicide by intoxicated use of a vehicle and second-degree reckless homicide. Solomon faces additional charges of hit-and-run resulting in death, first-degree recklessly endangering safety and obstructing an officer.

The crash occurred about 8:40 p.m. when the southbound Nissan pickup left the road and traveled through the median. The pickup struck a northbound Volkswagen head-on near Oconto County D, killing the driver, Cory Folts, 22, of Oconto Falls.

Crispin, of St. Paul, Minn., said they had been in the Green Bay area and were heading back to their motel room in Plymouth. She said they weren’t from the area, they got turned around and she wasn’t exactly sure where they were headed.

After telling Soloman she no longer wanted to date, as they were in a “toxic relationship," Crispin said he became upset and punched her in the right temple, then grabbed and jerked the steering wheel.

The next thing she knew was they were headed for another vehicle on the other side of the highway and the airbag went off and hit her in the chest.

“Crispin stated she believed that Solomon’s intention was to kill her and him when he grabbed the steering wheel and jerked it,” the complaint states.

An ambulance crew and a witness said Soloman ran into a cornfield on the east side of the highway and emerged a short time later. Both he and Crispin were treated at St. Vincent Hospital, then released to Oconto County authorities.

Soloman, of Plymouth, told a deputy that he and Crispin left Plymouth, went to Sheboygan and then drove to Green Bay. When they started to drive home, they went in the wrong direction.

“(Soloman) indicated the only thing he remembered after turning around was waking up in the hospital,” the complaint said.

A preliminary breath test showed an alcohol content of 0.095 percent.

At initial appearances, Soloman's bond was set at $250,000 cash, while Crispin's was set at $100,000 cash.

The two homicide charges and the hit and run-resulting in death charge carry maximum terms of 25 years in prison. The first-degree reckless endangerment charge is punishable by up to 12½ years in prison, while obstructing an officer is a misdemeanor with a possible nine months of incarceration.

Soloman's address on the complaint is listed as Plymouth, Wyoming, but District Attorney Edward Burke said that may be a typo.